


Cranberry Frappuccinos

by mariuspondmercy



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, F/M, Fluff, coffee shop AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-06
Updated: 2016-08-06
Packaged: 2018-07-29 18:28:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7694857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mariuspondmercy/pseuds/mariuspondmercy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Working as a barista to pay for university has never been Scorpius' dream. He hates the job but his attitude changes when one day a certain redhead steps into the coffee shop and turns his world around.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cranberry Frappuccinos

Wednesday, September 1.

It was particularly busy today as university had just started. All morning long old and young students had been coming in and rushing out again, with a coffee in hand which held all the hope they had for their upcoming semester.

The four baristas tried their best to satisfy every such odd order in the shortest time possible, all while keeping a friendly smile on their lips and a polite attitude towards the rudest customers.

They were heavily understaffed for this day but apparently their managers hadn’t thought about the negative aspects of the start of university. All they had in mind was the money. As usual.

They had a chain, for better efficiency: Scorpius took the orders, Albus prepared the coffees, Wei collected the money and Lauren dealt with sandwiches, paninis and the sort.

“Hey, what can I get for you?” Scorpius asked, smiling his work-smile; all fake-friendly and a little stiff, too.

If he would only get a pound each time he’d ask that question, he could quit that dreadful job and pay for university.

“A coffee to go, black, please.”

A nod by Scorpius. “What’s your name?” he asked the girl in front of him, pen ready to write it on the cup.

“Shona”, she replied before hurrying along to pay at Wei’s station.

“Hey, what can I get for you?” Scorpius asked the next customer. And the one after. And the one after that one. For all he knew, they could all be the same person. He didn’t pay attention to them at all, wouldn’t remember their faces if his life depended on it.

“Hey, what can I get for you?” he asked again; the smile was sure to start hurting in the course of the day.

“Oh... I... Huh, I haven’t even thought about that yet. Ehm, can you get me a... no wait! I’d like a... something fruity with caffeine, do you have that?”

“We have a wide range of frappuccinos, for example strawberry, apple or cranberry”, he recited without taking particular notice. The woman only slowed down the queue and other customers were already growing more and more impatient.

“Oh, right, yes, sorry about that. A cranberry frappuccino would be great, please, thank you.”

“Right, thanks. What name can I write down?”

“My name, that would be great, otherwise someone else gets my order and that would be sort of upsetting.”

“Yes, indeed. How is your name?” He looked at her, or rather not at her but at the queue behind her.

“Sorry, a little confused this morning. It’s Rose. R-O-S-E. Thank you.”

“Yes, thank you. Next one please!”

The morning rushed; a constant stream of customers giving the staff no time to catch a break. Shortly after 11am, the queue got a little shorter, the mass died away at least a bit. Calm before the storm, because hell was breaking loose between 1pm-3pm.

The staff had swapped places, Scorpius now working as cashier.

“That’s £8.90 for you then, thank you.”

“Yeah, right, sorry, thanks!” The woman handed him a £10 bill, smiling apologetically, “I’m sorry, I don’t have smaller change. I know that’s really inconvenient. Oh and I wanted to apologize for this morning. You probably don’t remember, of course you don’t, I’m sorry, you have a lot of customers. And here I am again, rambling away and keeping the queue waiting. Sorry.”

She took her change and quickly made way for the next customer, something Scorpius was very thankful for.

Friday, September 24.

"Hey, what can I get for you?", he heard his co-worker ask.

Scorpius hated very second of this job, with every cell of his body. It was the same thing over and over again, every day.

Well, not every day, as he only worked four days a week. Sundays were actually his favourites. No stressed out students who came rushing in to buy their third coffee that day, only relaxed families with their children and friends who casually met up.

But this wasn’t a Sunday. Luckily, the seemingly endless stream of customers was a little more patient on Friday mornings; the upcoming weekend made everything look a little brighter.

Today, Scorpius was on coffee duty. Which was even worse than taking orders, even duller.

Looking at the cup in his hand, he twisted it to read the name on it before placing it down and exclaiming: “a cranberry frappuccino for Rose!”

Without waiting for the beverage to be picked up, Scorpius turned around again and took care of the next order.

Something about the order made him stop in his tracks for a few seconds, something he couldn’t pinpoint, but he quickly discarded all thoughts about it, concentrating once again on his tasks at hand.

It wasn’t until half past one that he had the time to take a short break for some quick lunch before returning back, taking coffee orders this time.

"Hey, what can I get for you?"

Scorpius tried to concentrate on the customer in front of him, smiling his usual customer-friendly smile. It started to hurt a little, all this fake happiness, the fake friendliness.

Yes, he was a generally friendly young man but not the happiest sometimes. His last semester of university stressed him out just so much, work at the coffee shop combined with his studies and his bachelor thesis took away a lot from his free time and social life. Even though he was a usually shy person, Scorpius did enjoy the company of others, but that came just too short lately. Sometimes he met up with his co-worker Albus, who had become his best friend during the last two years. The man with the black hair was a lot opener and more extroverted than his blond companion.

His customer’s voice dragged him out of his thoughts, left him a little confused at first.

"Hi! I’d like a hot chocolate with hazelnut and a pesto panini, please. To eat here. Oh and the name is Rose. R-O-S-E. I’m actually sticking to the cranberry frappuccino every morning now! You probably don’t remember, do you? There’s always so many customers, I know. I have the same problem at work, I never can remember their faces but I remember their animals. Kinda odd, isn’t it? Would that mean that you remember orders? Huh, probably not... Sorry, I’m stopping the queue again, very sorry about that." She laughed a little, quickly stepping to her right, paying her order.

“You work with animals?”, Scorpius heard Albus ask. His friend, ever the socialiser, ever the curious, ever the flirter.

“Yeah, I do”, the woman, Rose, nodded, “I’m doing an internship at the zoo here in London. Well, I’m writing my bachelor thesis together with the vet there, about the social behaviour of feline animals with special attention towards stress.”

“That sounds really interesting. Have you found out a lot so far?”

“Nah, I only started a few weeks ago and I won’t be writing the thesis for another month or two. Oh, I’m holding up the queue again. Have a nice day!”

“Thanks, you too.”

Scorpius only rolled his eyes. They weren’t supposed to engage in chit-chat, they were supposed to work and serve as many customers as possible in the shortest time. But it was Al and Scorpius adored the social side his friend loved to show.

 

Monday, October 3.

For about a month now, Rose had been coming in every morning at the same time, ordering the cranberry frappuccino everytim. Scorpius found himself wondering if she would choose a warm beverage now that it got colder outside. And then he wondered why he even wondered about it.

For about a month now, Rose had been coming in every lunch break at the same time, ordering the hot chocolate with hazelnut and a different panini or sandwich with it. Scorpius found himself wondering if she would order something else now that the season of pumpkin was upon them. And then he wondered why he even wondered about it.

Not that Scorpius had ever talked to her outside of the usual work conversations. No, it was always Albus who talked to her, Albus who asked her questions and made her laugh. It was highly unprofessional.

“Hey Rose. Same as usual?” the blond boy welcomed her this morning.

“Same as usual, yes please. Remember, R-O-S-E.”

“I’ll remember, don’t worry” Albus laughed, scribbling her name on the cup before handing it to Scorpius, “See you later, Rose.”

“Am I stopping the queue again? Yes, see you later!”

Scorpius just sighed softly, preparing her usual drink. Albus really should stop flirting with her; he was at work, that’s nothing you do while working. He should ask her out.

The thought made a chill run down Scorpius’ spine, leaving him confused and uncomfortable. Where did that suddenly come from? It wasn’t as if he would be into her. He couldn’t even recall how she looked like and wasn’t physical attraction an important part of having a crush on someone? No, Scorpius was not into that odd girl.

Involuntarily, Scorpius let out a noise of disapproval, followed by a deep sigh.

“Oh dear, what’s going on with you, princess?” Albus teased him.

“Nothing. Just... you know, stress and stuff. No worries.”

“Sure about that? I’m your best friend, you can’t hide anything from me.”

“Yeah, I know. Really, Al, it’s nothing. I’m just stressed out about my thesis, that’s all.”

“Okay, I’ll take your word for it. Hey, which shift do you want to have after your lunch break? You’re free to choose today, because I’m feeling generous.”

“Of course you are, after flirting with all our customers...”

“Ah, that’s where the problem is! Scorpius has a crush.”

“I don’t have a crush. I just think you’re being unprofessional. You know my attitude towards personal life and work life.”

“I do.” Albus sighed, “Sorry. Anyway. Which shift?”

“Cashier, please.”

“You got it! But now, back to work!”

“Oi!” Scorpius laughed, “You’re the one who procrastinates!”

Albus just rolled his eyes, getting to work again.

After lunch, Scorpius took Albus’ place at the register. There wasn’t much to do, so he tidied up the shop, cleaned the tables and rearranged a few things to make more space.

By half one, Rose was in again, ordering her usual hot chocolate with hazelnut. So no pumpkin, even though everything was pumpkin-spice in October. Scorpius guessed she just wasn’t a girl to bow to social conventions. But then again: maybe she just didn’t like pumpkin. Or it was too early for her to drink something with its flavour.

Once again, Scorpius wondered why he even cared.

 

Friday, October 31.

By now, Rose got handed her cranberry frappuccino every morning without even having to order it; the staff knew at which time she would be in the coffee shop and a freshly made beverage of her choice was already waiting for her. She had even paid in advance, so that she only needed to grab the frappuccino. She still stayed for a quick chat, though, with whoever was handing out the drinks.

“We’re having a Halloween party in the zoo today” she told Scorpius while taking her cup, “Well, not really a party. We’re just supposed to dress up for work today. I just don’t know if anyone will get this... I do! And I know my boss will. But I’m not sure about the visitors. It’s just so cold outside! Do you think it was a silly choice?” She sighed and Scorpius really couldn’t help but reply. Usually he kept quiet and let her talk. She didn’t seem to mind that he never answered her.

“Ygritte is a nice choice, considering you’re outside most of the day. And if the visitors don’t know her, they’ll just think you’re an Inuit, which is fine as well.”

“Really?” She looked up at him through her lashes, biting her lower lip, “Ugh. I don’t even know why I care so much. I just do and I know it’s silly. I just didn’t want to be a Disney princess again. I was Anna last year, Merida the year before and before that I was Ariel. Try finding costumes for redheads.”

“Poison Ivy” he shrugged, “Black Widow, Scooby Doo’s Daphne, Amy Pond...”

“Donna Noble!” Rose exclaimed excitedly, “And now I regret my choice of costume. I should’ve talked to you earlier.”

“Ygritte is still a very good choice and your costume will at least keep you warm” he replied politely.

“Yeah... maybe I can get something together for the party tonight. Are you gonna be there, too? Albus invited me, so I figured you might join as well...”

“I’m not. I’m working the morning shift the next day.”

Rose nodded, taking a sip of her drink. “Oh, alright. I’m off then, I guess. Sorry for keeping you from work for so long. And thank you for the costume ideas. Guess I see you around lunchtime then.” With a small smile, Rose turned around and left the coffee shop.

Scorpius sighed and lightly shook his head before concentrating on his work again. She really was a distraction, always talking, always bubbling over with excitement. He wondered if she was even capable of having a bad day. Probably not. He knew people like her; people who were nice to everyone, flirty and just so fake. He didn’t believe a single word she said, didn’t believe her whole carefree attitude.

Why did Albus invite her? Maybe he really had a crush on her. But if so, he would’ve told him. Albus always told Scorpius everything.

His mood had dropped after Rose’s visit though he tried to conceal it as good as possible. He couldn’t fool his best friend. Not at all. Albus knew something was up and asked, probed, questioned until Scorpius finally gave in: “You invited Rose to your Halloween party. Don’t you think that’s a little unprofessional? We’re not supposed to mingle with our customers.”

Albus merely sighed, shaking his head. “There’s no need to be jealous, Scorp. I’m not interested in her. She isn’t interested in me. It’s a shame you can’t join us, otherwise you’d see that there’s nothing going on.”

 

Friday, November 28.

The last few days have been hard on Scorpius. His paternal grandfather had just passed away and even though they hadn’t had the best relationship and had never been particularly close, Scorpius still mourned him. His grandfather, who had acted as a German spy in the Second World War, had been a terrible person in his younger years. Scorpius had been told so. As a child, Scorpius had been very afraid of the old, stern-looking man. Lucius Malfoy hadn’t been very good with children. The older Scorpius got, the easier it was to talk to him. Scorpius had learned about his grandfather’s involvement in the war and his motivation, he had seen the change that had occurred in a formerly bitter and hateful man. Maybe that was why Scorpius mourned him: his role-model, his current reminder that your past cannot dictate your future, had died.

His general state of panic because he was behind on his research for his bachelor thesis didn’t help to lighten the mood and neither did the ever-complaining customers in the coffee shop.

The funeral had been this morning, which is why Scorpius started his shift in the afternoon, taking over for Albus.

His friend would come around after work, to cheer Scorpius up. Or at least to try cheering him up.

Starting in the afternoon and closing the shop meant something Scorpius hadn’t realized until he had turned the key locking the front door. It meant he hadn’t seen Rose.

Giving that he usually worked the morning to afternoon shift on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, he usually saw the redhead three times a week, twice a day.

The lack of her voice, the lack of her auburn curls whooshing past him when she hurried out of the shop, came as a sudden shock to him. He wouldn’t have expected to even remember, to even miss it. No, missing it – or her – wasn’t the right thing to say. It was more of an odd feeling in his chest which slowly dragged its way up to his throat and down to his stomach. Maybe it was just the thought of the funeral, the thought of seeing his father and grandmother cry which made him feel this way. Yes, it most certainly had nothing to do with not seeing a person he didn’t even talk to properly.

Scorpius ran his hand through his blond hair, sighing lightly, before he tucked away the key safely in his coat pockets.

“Oh thank God, you’re still here!” he could hear a familiar voice behind him.

Turning around, he found himself faced with Rose, clearly out of breath.

“My train got stuck, I’m so sorry, I wanted to catch you before closing time, I’m really sorry!” She took a deep breath to calm herself. “Look, I know you don’t believe in the whole ‘engaging with customers’ thing. Albus told me. But he also told me what happened and why you weren’t at work today. And I just... I’m sorry, this sounds really creepy now that I think about it. You see, I thought about it all day and then the time it took me to get from my place to here and only now does it sound like I’m just so weird and I...” Rose sighed.

Scorpius frowned. He really wasn’t sure where this was leading. Or why Rose wanted to talk to him. But he let her; didn’t interrupt her.

“I wanted to make sure that you’re alright. That’s all. And I didn’t come after work because I figured that you’d prefer it if I wouldn’t delay the queue like I always do when I’m at the coffee shop. I just talk a lot and then I don’t stop anymore. You might have noticed that by now.” She gave a small chuckle. “See, I’m doing it again. Anyway, as I said, I just wanted to see how you’re doing. I’m sorry about your grandfather. Trust me when I tell you that it’s going to be fine eventually.”

“Yeah, I’m alright, thanks”, Scorpius managed to say, “I’m alright.”

“Alright.” Rose nodded, smiling ever so lightly, “I’m glad. Oh, I can see Al coming towards us. I’ll see you on Monday then. Take care.” She quickly squeezed his hand and even though she was wearing gloves, he could still feel the warmth radiating from her gesture.

With a last smile and a wave of her hand, Rose turned around and vanished into the darkness, leaving Scorpius behind. He stood there, simply staring after her, trying to wrap his mind around it.

“Was that Rose?” was Albus first question upon approaching his friend, “What was she doing here?”

“Seeing if I’m alright.” Scorpius shrugged, “Where should we go for a pint?”

“You do know it takes her 56 minutes to get from her place to here, right?”

“Oh.” Scorpius simply said, “No. I didn’t know that.”

 

Wednesday, December 21.

“You won’t believe this!” Rose practically yelled as soon as she had entered the coffee shop.

It was shortly after 7am and they had just opened up. She was way earlier than usual, so her drink wasn’t even in preparation.

“I’m so excited!” Rose had a wide grin on her lips, which completely diminished the fact that the dark circles under her eyes were very prominent.

She took her phone out of her pocket, quickly looking something up before she showed a photo to Scorpius, who was standing behind the counter.

“Tiger cubs! They were born tonight and I was there and I saw it and it was the most amazing experience in my life. Not only did it help me with my bachelor thesis but it was also an event of pure magic.” The redhead jumped up and down in excitement.

“Can you believe it? I witnessed a birth! I was right there, the whole night, all 16 hours! And I held a tiger cub, I really did, right after it was born! I cleaned it up while the mother was busy giving birth to the second cub. I washed and petted a baby tiger. A newborn tiger, can you believe it?”

“16 hours? Rose, did you sleep at all?” Albus asked, laughing a little.

“Nope, not at all. I’ve been awake since 5:30 yesterday morning and I desperately need an Earl Grey and a mango chutney panini, please.”

“I’m sure Scorp will fix that for you. Why don’t you just sit down and we take care of the rest?”

“Great idea!” She nodded enthusiastically and took a seat close to the counter, next to the window.

A few minutes later, Scorpius brought her the tea and panini. It wasn’t common to bring the order to the customer but then again, Rose was not their common customer. She had come to the coffee shop every morning since September and was getting on really well with Albus.

Scorpius had noticed lately that they even hugged sometimes. A few days ago, Rose had even kissed him on the cheek, something which had caused Scorpius to drop the dirty cup into the sink.

It hadn’t been because Scorpius was crushing on Rose. Because he wasn’t. He’d know if he was. No, it had been because he didn’t know that Albus and Rose had become so close, close enough for hugs and kisses. He had thought that his best friend would’ve told him about a new friendship. Or maybe a crush? Who knew.

“There you go.” He placed cup and plate on the table in front of Rose.

They hadn’t talked about the ‘incident’, as Scorpius liked to think of the time she had taken the train for an hour just to see if he was alright. He wouldn’t even talk about it with Albus. It had been too awkward, too irritating.

“Great, thank you. I have the day off today! Mainly because I drank so much coffee and I’m a mix of excitement, joy, sleep-deprivation, sugar and caffeine. I couldn’t possibly work. Instead I just spend my morning here and then go back home.”

She sighed happily, taking a sip of her tea.

“You know, I think today was the happiest day of my life. I’m not even joking! I love tigers, I love the London Zoo, I love their tiger reservoir and all the work they put into it. The first time I went there, on my first day, I literally cried. Not figuratively, no. Literally. I had actual tears streaming down my face because it was so beautiful and I couldn’t believe my luck that I was allowed to work with them, to research these beautiful tigers and their behaviour. And today I was allowed to hold a tiger cub. That was better than the day my brother was born, better than my first time, better than getting the job, better than finding out that Al and I are related, better than falling in love for the first time. It was amazing. And again, I’m keeping you from work. That keeps happening to me! I’m so sorry.”

Rose smiled an apologetic smile up at Scorpius.

“Just a second”, he frowned, “you and Albus are related?”

“Yes! Has he not told you? Huh, I figured he would... We found it out about a week ago. He was at my place for dinner and saw a photo of me and my dad, who is his uncle! See, when I was really young, my family moved to France to overcome some issues and somehow lost contact with the rest of the family. Well, and here I am, accidentally stumbling upon my cousin in the vastness of London.”

“Oh, alright. Yes, that is quite a coincidence”, Scorpius nodded, “I have to get back to work now. Enjoy your tea.” He smiled politely before concentrating once again on his work.

They were cousin. Long lost cousins.

They were not crushing on each other.

 

Friday, January 13.

Scorpius was cleaning the dishes when he heard Rose’s voice behind him, talking to Al about yesterday’s Christmas shopping.

It was amazing. He only had to hear her voice and something happened within him. He felt less tense, his smile became more genuine. After she came in every morning, he could deal with complicated customers. I didn’t even matter that she never stayed long in the mornings. It didn’t matter if she talked to him or not – although she always greeted him -, it didn’t matter what she said, because her mere presence made him feel like a better person.

By now, Scorpius even liked his job. Well, he didn’t hate it as much as he used to. And that was as good as it could get for him.

When Rose came in around noon, she sat down in the corner opposite the counter, next to the large window. Scorpius couldn’t help but marvel at how nicely the street light from outside illuminated her auburn curls. The lights weren’t shining very brightly as it was still light outside. Nevertheless, Scorpius thought she looked beautiful.

He caught himself staring at her ever so often, caught himself stopping his work because he was simply intrigued by her appearance, by the tone of her voice and the way she held her book.

Right now, Rose’s mug was lifted in the air, halfway between the table and her mouth. Her lips were slightly opened, as if she was just about to take a sip. But she was too focused on her book, so much that she had forgotten all about her hot chocolate.

Scorpius smirked at her sight, subconsciously running his fingers through his light hair, ruffling it up a bit.

“Look at you”, Albus grinned, slightly nudging Scorpius’ side, “all doe-eyed.”

“I’m not. You’re being weird, Al.”

“Yeah, sure.” He grinned. “Hey, I’ve been told that you extended your contract here. I thought you’d hate this job and wanted to quit.”

“I do. I can’t stand the work, the working conditions here are poor, it’s of no help for my future. I could better work as a receptionist in a doctor’s office.”

“So why did you renew it?”

Scorpius sighed, quickly glancing over to where Rose was sitting.

Her eyes were locked on her book while she was taking small sips from her drink. The whipped cream had left a little stain on the tip of her nose.

“Don’t know. I just did.”

“Oh, I know exactly why you did it. Scorp, you are crushing on her, aren’t you?”

“Could you talk louder, please? I think the guy upstairs hasn’t heard you.” Scorpius sighed and turned around to face the sink once again, cleaning out the pot for the milk.

“I do”, he admitted after a while, “I mean I am. I’m crushing on her. So hard. She is amazing. You can’t believe how jealous I get everytime she hugs you. I know you’re related – which is still a very odd thing -, but I still get so jealous. My insides start to twist, my hands get all shaky and I have the sudden urge to strangle you.”

Albus laughed. “Oh God, I had no idea that you’re that lost. I thought maybe you’re just crushing a little bit. Fancying her. But not like this.”

“Trust me, it’s even worse than you think”, Scorpius sighed, “My day is miserable until she walks in every morning. It’s like seeing the light after a long time in the darkness. Like the clouds have lifted. I need her voice, her smile, her bubbliness just as much as she needs the cranberry frappuccino. This sounds like a stalker, doesn’t it? Like an unhealthy obsession.”

“I think there is something we need to do right now”, Albus told him.

Grabbing his friend by the arm, he dragged him to the table Rose was sitting at, clearing his throat.

“Rose? Have you met Scorpius?”

He pushed his friend forward a little.

“He’s a shy guy and he’s been having this huge crush on you for ages now. I’m sure he’ll give you his number and he’d love you to call him. Unfortunately, this pretty guy doesn’t know that you actually live in Edinburgh and go back there in about ten days, because your internship in London is over at the end of January. So, you two, figure something out.”

 

Tuesday, March 14.

Scorpius was sitting next to the huge window, opposite the counter in the coffee shop. The very spot Rose had sat in all these months ago.

He was enjoying his day off. No university, no work, just some coffee and a chat with his friend Albus. It was nice to go back to the place where he used to work, because he was still friends with his former co-workers and liked to occasionally pop in and chat to them for a little while.

The more he thought about it, the more he realized how much he had changed. He was more open, more social. Yes, the shy attitude would never go away. It was just who he was. He wasn’t as extroverted as Rose or Albus and that was perfectly fine with him.

“So how long has it been?” Albus asked after a while of comfortable silence.

“Two months. We skype every other day, we text a lot. She texts a lot, I just read. You have no idea how many snapchats she sends me every day. So so many. Yesterday, while I was sitting in my anatomy lecture, I opened one and I think the guy behind me nearly fell out of his chair.”

“Oh, please tell me she didn’t send you a nude...”

“No no no! We don’t do that. We don’t, no. No no, she sent me a picture of her right next to a tiger. Right next to it. And not a cub, nope. A full grown tiger.”

Albus chuckled. “Yes, that does sound like Rose. So you haven’t seen her in two months, huh? Do you plan on going up to Edinburgh anytime soon?”

“Easter Holidays. I don’t have to work in the doctor’s office then, so I can take the train and visit her. I miss her so much. Long distance relationships suck. But London has the best university for my master and Edinburgh is outstanding in her choice of master. So we just have to deal with it until she’s graduated in two years. Then she wants to move to London and since I’ll stay here for my PhD anyway, we can finally be together. Like a proper couple. Honestly, the two weeks before she left London were mostly occupied with dates, so there wasn’t much time to actually get a feeling of how being in a relationship would be.”

Scorpius sighed deeply and smiled a small smile.

“You really do miss her a lot, don’t you?”

“Well, I love her. Haven’t told her yet, obviously. But I do. She never fails to make me smile. All these random things she texts me just brighten my day. Random trivia about how German hospitals used to have a brewery, for example.”

“Yes, they did! And they used to give the patients a beer so they would sleep better!” Scorpius heard the familiar soft voice behind him.

Before he could even turn around to face her, Rose was hugging him from behind, kissing his cheek.

“Surprise! I’m gonna stay until Sunday and if you don’t want me in your flat I’ll stay with Al. He said it would be okay.”

“He knew you’d come?” Scorpius laughed and softly pulled Rose on his lap, kissing her softly, “Of course you can stay at my place. As if I would let go off you now.”

Rose giggled lightly and took Scorpius’ hand, lacing her fingers with his. “I love you too, you know?”

“Ugh, you’ve heard it? That really wasn’t how I wanted to tell you...”

“Nah, knowing you, you would’ve never told me! Albus would’ve needed to force you, because you’re way too shy to take the next step. Well, now I know, now you know, we all know and you really made my day. You would’ve anyway. God, I’ve missed you so much, Scorpius.”

She would only stay for a few days, Scorpius knew that, but somehow, right in this moment, denying her leaving was inevitable. He wanted to dwell in the impossible possibility of her in his arms for a little longer.

**Author's Note:**

> Let it be known that this is actually 2 years old and I just now realised I'd never uploaded it to AO3, so here we go. Hope you enjoyed it!


End file.
